To Have And To Hold
by soundsobeautiful
Summary: A short Eclare oneshot.


"Hmm." Clare's soft hum broke the silence between her and her boyfriend Eli as they walked down the sidewalk on their way to his house. Cars and people buzzed around them, but all he noticed was her. He looked down at their hands, held together as they walked and smiled.

"What's wrong?" He asked, gaining her full attention as she looked up at him.

She didn't sound very convincing with her reply, "Nothing."

"Really Clare." he stopped and she continued to move, getting yanked back slightly by his sudden stillness, "What's on your mind?"

"There's really nothing wrong," she began, "I'm just curious."

She pulled her eyes from his and looked down at their laced fingers, squeezing his hand gently with her own.

"Curious about what?" he asked now, curiosity of his own.

She stayed quiet, still looking down at their hands, swinging them slightly and then looked back up at him, "Why do you love me?"

Eli chuckled and continued on, Clare keeping his pace as she began walking again with him.

"I thought you already knew." he said and Clare shook his head.

"I know that you do, and I know that I love you and why I do…" her voice went quiet, "But I want to know why you love me."

Eli looked over at her and let out a light breath, "I love your eyes."

Clare rolled the said thing and laughed, "I don't mean it like that."

"What do you mean?"

"Why do you love me. Not what do you love about me."

They walked on a few more feet, seeming as if Eli was thinking though he already knew all of the answers. Talking about why he loved Clare wasn't hard. Rambling about how much he loved her was the problem. He felt as if he could go on for days talking about what it was about her that he loved, because when it really came down to it he couldn't think of a thing that he didn't.

"I love the way you care about people." He'd stopped again but this time she stopped with him as he pulled her to the side of the sidewalk. He leaned against the fence there and pulled her body to his, looking down at her with a smile, "You're kind. Maybe too kind in a way but I love that. You don't care what someone has done, because in your eyes everyone deserves forgiveness. You don't judge."

"It's God's job to judge people, not ours. And everyone deserves forgiveness."

Eli chuckled at her words, "I love that you're so into your beliefs and you don't let anyone else's opinion shake you from that."

Clare smiled as his hands found her waist.

"I love your determination and how you never give up on people, no matter what. You love to help the people around you and never expect anything in return."

Clare's smile never faltered and she could feel her cheeks growing sore.

"I love the way that, I can be in a room full of people, and when you walk in it's like you're the only person there. You light up the entire place with just one smile. I love how your hand fits perfectly into mine, like it was meant to hold yours. I love your lips, because I never want to think about kissing anyone else's lips in my entire life."

Clare smiled and stood up on her tippy toes to press their lips together, kissing him softly and smiled as she pulled back.

"Do you want to know what I love about you?" She asked, her entire thoughts already collected in her head. But Eli shook his and that caught her off guard.

"I don't need to know why you love me." he began, a smile still on his face, "Just the fact that you do is good enough for me. I couldn't ask for anything better than that."

Clare blushed lightly and looked down, staring at her feet for a few moments and then slowly looked back up at him.

"Marry me." He smiled, the look in his eyes taking Clare's breath away.

"Name the time and place." she said with a light chuckle as Eli's hands settled at her waist, pulling her body close to his.

His smile grew to a smirk as his fingers rubbed the skin beneath her shirt gently, "Right here. Right now."

Clare looked at him slightly confused but laughed softly as she raised her eyebrow.

Eli moved his hands from her body and to her hands, lacing their fingers together as he looked down at her.

"Do you Clare Edwards take this man to be your lawfully wedded husband?" He asked, his voice soft and low. Clare looked up into his eyes lovingly and bit the corner of her lip to fight back her smile as she nodded, "I do."

Eli's smile in return outshined her own and he pulled her hands back, moving them to wrap them around his neck. As her fingers rested gently against him he slid his own hands down her arms and back to her waist.

"It's your turn to ask me." he chuckled and Clare blushed lightly.

"Oh right. Hmm." She cleared her throat and looked at him confidently, a straight look on her face, "Do you Elijah Goldsworthy, take this woman to be your lawfully wedded wife?"

There was a few moments of silence while Eli just looked deep into her eyes, mesmerized by the beautiful blue orbs.

"To have and to hold until death do us part." he replied as he moved his face closer to hers, pressing their foreheads together, "I do."

"Then you may now kiss the bride." She grinned before Eli pressed his lips to hers, kissing her deeply and pulled her body even closer to his. Neither of them cared that they were standing on the sidewalk because to both of them they were the only two people in the world. Clare let her fingers dance through his hair, lacing them in his dark hair. Her stomach erupted with butterflies as she played out the moment in her mind over again and realized just how perfectly everything was. Nothing else in the world mattered anymore. Just him, and her.

"I love you Mrs. Goldsworthy." Eli chuckled and Clare grinned widely in return.

"I love you more, Mr. Goldsworthy."

Eli smiled back at her before kissing her lips briefly one more time, "Not a chance."

**(Reviews would be lovely please :D)**


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